The Worst American Bathroom Habit — EXPOSED

There’s one thing we all do in the bathroom… and it’s more harmful than you might think.

Let me ask you a question…

Would you wash a dirty dish with a paper towel?

Probably not, right? Like most Americans, you’d use lots of soap and water, and you’d continue to rinse the dish until it was completely clean.

So if we go to all that trouble to wash our dishes…

Why don’t we use these same cleaning habits in the bathroom?

Think about it…

We’re obsessed with cleanliness on every other level — we wash our hands, clothes, and bodies with soap and water.

And yet, when it comes to removing fecal matter from our bodies after using the bathroom… we wipe ourselves with a few sheets of paper and consider ourselves good as new.

But it turns out… we’re not getting nearly as clean as we think.

In fact, wiping yourself with toilet paper is America’s #1 MOST ineffective hygiene method.

It’s true — the way we’ve ALL been taught to clean ourselves is actually doing our bodies more harm than good.

Because not only are we spreading diseases — but we’re also causing potential harm to our own bodies.

It starts with our hands…

Every time you wipe, your hands are likely to come into contact with urine and feces… and even the best hand-washers aren’t immune.

In fact, only 5 percent of people wash their hands thoroughly enough to kill germs and bacteria.

And according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 80 percent of all infectious diseases are transmitted by human hands.

So we’re not only coming into direct contact with urine and feces — we’re also taking these germs with us when we leave the bathroom…

Spreading disease and bacteria onto everything we touch.

America’s Most Wasteful Habit

Every year, more than 9 million trees in the U.S. are cut down to manufacture toilet paper.

In fact, the average American uses nearly 50 pounds of toilet paper a year – that’s the equivalent of about 2.8 miles.

And we use more per person than any other country!

Even worse — it takes an entire Eucalyptus tree to make 1,000 rolls of toilet paper… and nearly 470 billion gallons of water are used to create toilet paper every year.

And it doesn’t end there…

Aside from the environmental damage, using toilet paper is also extremely harmful your body.

It can lead to a number of health risks, including bacterial infection, skin irritation, and the spread of disease.

Here are just a few of the health risks involved with using toilet paper…

1) Lack of Cleanliness

Although toilet paper does remove some of the fecal matter left behind after using the bathroom, it is ineffective at removing everything. In fact, it is impossible to remove all traces of feces using toilet paper.

(Even worse, many poor-quality toilet papers leave behind traces of paper after you wipe… which can be harmful to the rectal area and cause irritation.)

2) Chance of Bacterial Infection

Toilet paper is likely to spread bacteria throughout the genital and rectal areas during the wiping process… which can lead to irritation or infection.

3) Spread of Germs

Because toilet paper requires you to wipe, your hands are likely to come into contact with feces or urine.. and even after washing your hands, you are still at risk of spreading germs caused by wiping.

4) Risk of Skin Irritation

Cheaper brands of toilet paper may cause irritation to your skin or rectal area… especially if the texture of the toilet paper is rough enough to scratch your skin while you wipe.

These open scratches or rashes left behind can be incredibly uncomfortable… and they can lead to chafing or infection.

So what is the solution?

In order to actually avoid coming into contact with fecal matter (and thoroughly clean ourselves)… we need to actively change our habits.

This means not relying on toilet paper to do the “dirty” work… and using the one cleansing method that actually gets the job done.

In fact — a bidet is the ONLY method of personal hygiene that actually cleanses your body effectively.

Why?

Well, to put it simply — because you don’t have to use your hands.

Bidets allow you to control every setting from a remote control panel, so your hands never come into contact with your genital area. (This can be especially helpful for seniors or people with arthritis, injury, or limited mobility.)

The bidet cleansing method can also benefit women who experience frequent urinary tract infections (UTIs), as it thoroughly removes the bacteria in and around the urethra area…

Which is something that toilet paper cannot do.

Here are just some of the many benefits of using a bidet…

• MORE environmentally friendly

• MORE hygienic

• MORE cost-efficient

• LESS irritating to skin

• LESS harmful to the environment

• LESS expensive in the long run

Remember — every time you wipe, you’re exposing yourself (and everything you touch) to bacteria and disease.

And as long as we continue to use toilet paper, these damaging effects aren’t likely to change any time soon.

Which is why it’s crucial that we change our habits.

Because when it comes to our personal hygiene… toilet paper alone is not enough.

Sources:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16199405

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3012853/

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/toilet-tissue-anthropologists-uncover-all-the-ways-weve-wiped/

https://www.nrdc.org/resources/shoppers-guide-home-tissue-products

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/toilet-paper.htm

https://www.yahoo.com/beauty/bidets-are-healthier-than-toilet-paper-so-why-111571549767.html

https://www.good.is/features/why-wont-north-americans-use-bidets-toilet-paper-water-waste

https://tonic.vice.com/en_us/article/lets-be-real-americans-are-walking-around-with-dirty-anuses

https://www.brondell.com/healthy-living-blog/clearing-up-the-top-10-misconceptions-about-bidets/

https://www.bidet.org/pages/bidet-benefits

https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/1060/is-cleaning-yourself-with-toilet-paper-cleaner-than-using-water

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-sh-germs-handshake-fist-bump-20140109-story.html#axzz2pur09Zlr

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/survey-reveals-annoying-bathroom-habits-article-1.2430974

http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2014/10/dont-americans-use-bidets/